What if you could place nearly every candidate you represent—and do it at premium fees, without racing to the bottom?
In this episode of The Resilient Recruiter, Mark Whitby is joined by Lysha Holmes, founder of Key Recruitment and host of The Recruiters Recruitment Podcast. With over two decades in Rec2Rec, Lysha has built a reputation as one of the most trusted names in the industry, running a values-led business that thrives entirely on referrals, reputation, and results.
You’ll hear how Lysha consistently achieves a 1:1.15 interview-to-placement ratio, attracts inbound talent, and commands 20% to 30% fees—all by positioning her agency as the go-to partner for elite candidates and progressive recruitment firms.
If you’re a recruitment agency owner looking to elevate your service, protect your margins, and build a more sustainable business, this episode is a must-listen.
Tune in for a masterclass in positioning, quality over quantity, and leading with integrity.
Episode Outline and Highlights
- [06:22] How Lysha fell into recruitment in 1998 and what kept her engaged all these years.
- [13:41] How Qui Recruitment was launched and the initial hurdles Lysha had to overcome.
- [18:11] The challenges of a REC2REC company when dealing with clients.
- [22:52] QUI – Quality, Urgency & Integrity – how Qui Recruitment’s values shape their success.
- [26:32] Discussion on the three distinct advantages of candidate exclusivity.
- [38:25] What a successful business development looks like.
- [44:22] Exploring the value of social selling.
- [50:17] What are the best uses of AI that Lysha has noticed so far?
- [56:30] How many client meetings a week should you be doing?
- [59:03] Lysha’s journey to sobriety and how giving up alcohol improved her wellbeing, energy, and leadership.
Candidate Exclusivity as a Key Differentiator
For rec-to-rec agency owners, managing candidate control is a constant challenge. Lysha shares how making exclusivity a non-negotiable transforms the process, protecting candidate confidentiality, reducing conflicts, and boosting placement success. She outlined at least three benefits of candidate exclusivity:
1. Confidentiality and Control for the Candidate
Lysha emphasizes that recruitment is a small world. Candidates may unknowingly risk their profile being shared with companies tied to their current employer, investors, or acquisition partners without exclusivity. Exclusivity ensures:
- Complete control over who sees the candidate’s profile
- Protection against awkward or damaging overlaps in the market
- Enhanced trust and integrity in the process
She argues this is particularly critical in an industry where relationships are intertwined and discretion is paramount.
2. Premium, Personalized Representation
Because Lysha’s firm works entirely on inbound referrals and personal brand credibility, not cold outreach or mass mailing, they can invest deeply in each exclusive candidate, the exclusivity model allows her to:
- Provide a free market appraisal: advising on salary, potential career paths, and positioning
- Curate a bespoke list of suitable opportunities tailored to the candidate’s strengths
- Represent the candidate with higher commitment and quality, increasing their odds of success
3. A Calmer, Higher-Quality Process for All Parties
Lysha describes exclusivity as creating a more enjoyable and professional experience for both the candidate and client. Key benefits here include:
No race to submit CVs, which often results in reduced quality and confusion for employers
This also helps clients avoid duplicate CVs or awkward overlaps between multiple agencies, which can damage trust.
These points illustrate how exclusivity aligns everyone—candidate, recruiter, and employer—toward better outcomes, less chaos, and greater mutual respect.
How Much Should You Invest in Business Development as a REC2REC Agency?
For Lysha, “Everything you do is business development—it’s how you show up.”
Although she never relies on cold calling, she typically uses channels to build her inbound pipeline centered around building relationships and consistent content. This includes conversations with candidates, social engagement, in-person meetings, and value-driven follow-ups. To her, every touchpoint is an opportunity to build trust and relationships with clients or candidates.
Lysha emphasizes a multi-channel approach: LinkedIn personal branding, phone, virtual meetings, and content sharing. She also champions collaboration between generations, recognizing Gen Z’s strength in social selling: “They’re brilliant at social selling. Let’s incorporate how they sell and almost learn off each other.”
She hosts The Recruiters Recruitment Podcast, now in its fifth season, which has a global audience. She uses this opportunity to connect further with potential clients and candidates.
Lysha firmly believes BD isn’t a single activity, like cold calling or prospecting—it’s the sum of all interactions in the recruitment process.
Achieving the Ratio of 1.15 Interview-to-Placement Model
Lysha also shared their impressive interview-to-placement ratio of 1 in 1.15, which indicates a highly efficient recruitment process. Achieving such a ratio reflects strong client relationships and a deep understanding of candidate fit within company cultures. Lysha shares how they achieve a 1.15 interview-to-placement ratio by carefully selecting who she represents and matching them to the right clients.
- Scoring candidate fit: billing history, tenure, cultural alignment, likability
- Fewer submissions, better outcomes: most candidates are introduced to just 1–2 clients
- Clear criteria: if they don’t meet the bar, she’ll coach or redirect them
“We don’t go past three interviews. If we do, they’re not as premium as we thought.”
